GLNF-CESU: Pilot Study Evaluating the Relationship of Community Gravel Beds and Developing Sustainable Tree Canopies- MWRO | NPS NOIP18AC00073

Opportunity Information: Apply for NPS NOIP18AC00073

This grant opportunity, titled "GLNF-CESU: Pilot Study Evaluating the Relationship of Community Gravel Beds and Developing Sustainable Tree Canopies - MWRO," is a National Park Service (NPS) cooperative agreement (P18AC00073) issued through the Great Lakes Northern Forest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (GLNF-CESU). The recipient is the Regents of the University of Minnesota, an eligible public, state-controlled institution of higher education under CFDA 15.945. The work is framed as applied research and demonstration focused on practical tree planting methods, long-term canopy outcomes, and community capacity building across Great Lakes-region communities. The opportunity was created December 19, 2017, with an original closing date of December 31, 2017. The expected award count is one, with an award ceiling of $204,009.

The project is motivated by documented declines in urban tree canopy across the United States, alongside increases in impervious surface cover. It also responds to a broader concern that native vegetation is not naturally regenerating in many areas, leading to shifts in plant community composition. A key premise is that planting strategy and nursery stock type can influence both cost and success. Prior work in Minnesota (Dierich, 2013) suggested bare-root trees can be the least expensive option while achieving survival rates comparable to containerized or balled-and-burlapped stock. In the Upper Midwest, bare-root material also tends to offer the widest species selection. The project leans into the idea that "community gravel beds" (a method for temporarily heeling bare-root stock into gravel to hold it through the growing season) might enable communities to buy diverse bare-root trees in spring, maintain them efficiently, and then plant at the most favorable time in fall when irrigation demands are lower, consistent with common nursery stock guidance (ANSI Z60.1).

The overall purpose is to evaluate whether community gravel beds, paired with different nursery rooting types and planting approaches, can produce healthier, more resilient, and more affordable urban and community tree canopy outcomes. The study is designed not just to report short-term survival, but to connect early establishment to longer-term canopy projections (30 years out) and potential environmental co-benefits such as stormwater and runoff reduction. The findings are intended to be directly usable by federal, state, county, and tribal programs, as well as local governments and restoration partners, especially if results indicate that improved establishment can be achieved at lower cost. There is also an explicit connection to Great Lakes restoration goals, including the idea that more robust canopy can help reduce nutrient runoff in urban settings over time.

The project sets out four main objectives. First, it will document the species and nursery rooting types used in participating planting initiatives, track survival and establishment for three years, and model canopy cover impacts over a 30-year horizon. Second, it will document citizen engagement in each community to quantify how volunteer participation influences local capacity to run and sustain canopy planting efforts. Third, it will examine whether the planting initiatives change the genetic diversity profile of community tree populations (in practice, this means tracking shifts in the mix of species and potentially varieties used, with an eye toward avoiding over-reliance on a narrow set of trees). Fourth, it will assess species adaptability across landscape indices such as shade, lowland conditions, soil characteristics, and other site factors, with special attention to new sites near Lake Superior and southern Lake Michigan. By comparing Great Lakes sites to non-Great Lakes contexts, the study aims to isolate which environmental variables most strongly affect survival and establishment, and therefore the likelihood of meaningful canopy cover decades later.

Geographically, the work is organized around two focal areas. In Western Lake Superior, four Minnesota North Shore communities (Duluth, Hermantown, Silver Bay, and Grand Marais) are slated to begin canopy planting initiatives in spring 2018. The principal investigator will work with these communities to establish gravel beds and monitor a set of variables over two years. In Southern Lake Michigan, the City of Racine, Wisconsin is included, with additional potential participation from Gary, East Chicago, Hobart, and Michigan City. A key implementation feature in this region is that the NPS will host one or more community gravel beds at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore (INDU), supported by seasonal staff to help maintain the beds and assist with data collection. NPS staff are also expected to coordinate with local community programs and partners (examples cited include Chesterton's Tree Share program and the Shirley Heinze Land Trust) to elevate the project, share findings, and support outreach materials.

The study explicitly lists the variables it will measure, which clarifies what success looks like and how comparisons will be made. It will track the number of trees planted by nursery root type, including spring-planted bare root, containerized trees (plantable across a broader season), and bare-root trees held in gravel beds for fall planting. It will then measure survival after one year by species and root type, and establishment after three years by species, root type, and who performed the planting (volunteers versus city staff), recognizing that planting quality and aftercare can vary by planter type. It also includes tracking changes in species diversity within each community by comparing current tree inventory metrics to the composition of the planted cohort. Beyond simple alive/dead counts, it will conduct performance assessments by landscape type, distinguishing between maintained urban sites and unmaintained natural areas, and incorporating site indices such as soil conditions, light exposure, and animal pressure. The project also plans to estimate each species' relative future canopy contribution and model stormwater runoff management benefits using tools like the Minnesota Stormwater Manual MIDS calculator and i-Tree modeling platforms (for example i-Tree Streets or i-Tree Design), linking tree performance to quantifiable ecosystem services.

A major deliverable area is economics and implementation practicality. The cost-benefit analysis is expected to capture the full chain of costs: purchasing nursery stock, constructing and maintaining gravel beds, harvesting and planting, survival-driven replacement implications, and equipment costs. This is meant to translate findings into decision-ready guidance for communities and agencies that need to stretch limited planting dollars. In parallel, the project treats community engagement as a measurable outcome, documenting gravel bed setup participation, the number of volunteers and volunteer hours, involvement in species selection, and the level of care provided to trees. The underlying idea is that a planting approach that is technically sound but requires too much specialized labor may not scale, whereas a method that reliably mobilizes volunteers could be more sustainable over time.

Responsibilities are split clearly between the University of Minnesota and the National Park Service, consistent with a cooperative agreement model where substantial agency involvement is anticipated. The recipient (University of Minnesota) commits to working with parks and other federal lands in Minnesota and in the western/southern Lake Michigan area (including INDU) as well as with the City of Racine to collect the needed field data and answer the research questions. They also commit to producing best management practice information that federal agencies can incorporate into existing tree-planting grant programs, helping ensure the results do not stay siloed in academia. Outreach is built into the agreement: the recipient will deliver presentations to core teams and broader audiences such as builder associations, nursery associations, University of Minnesota Shade Tree course attendees (noted as a large multi-state audience), and urban forestry webinar participants. Public-facing communication is also required through a YouTube video explaining methods and results, and a technical report that includes a 3 to 5 page executive summary highlighting cost comparisons, survival and establishment results, and projections of the participating communities' tree genetic character out to 2050.

On the NPS side, the agency agrees to provide a liaison who will work jointly with the University of Minnesota to refine goals, scope, and activities, and to convene broader interagency coordination calls so the project aligns with multiple priorities where possible. NPS will also provide one to two gravel bed sites at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore for the southern Lake Michigan portion, and INDU will contribute staff time for two summers to support maintenance and data collection. Finally, NPS personnel will assist with developing the YouTube video, reinforcing that communication and replication are central goals rather than optional extras.

Taken together, this opportunity supports a practical, field-based pilot study that blends urban forestry, restoration, and community science: it tests whether gravel-bed handling of bare-root trees can improve fall planting outcomes, reduce costs, and expand species diversity, while also documenting volunteer-driven capacity and projecting long-term canopy and stormwater benefits. The emphasis on standardized variable tracking, multi-site Great Lakes comparisons, economic analysis, and concrete outreach products suggests the intended end result is a set of implementable practices that communities and agencies can adopt to rebuild and sustain tree canopy in the face of ongoing canopy decline.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the agriculture, education, environment, natural resources, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "GLNF-CESU: Pilot Study Evaluating the Relationship of Community Gravel Beds and Developing Sustainable Tree Canopies- MWRO" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.945.
• This funding opportunity was created on Dec 19, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Dec 31, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $204,009.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education.

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